People Search
Returns records that directly match what you enter. Use any combination of name, phone, email, social URL, IP address, date of birth and address, or a single field on its own.
- Use it to
- Start a trace and follow up each new detail
Locate people
Skip tracing from the details you hold
Start a Caspar search with whatever your file contains, even a single old phone number. Review the candidate records, explore connected addresses and people, and take each new detail into the next search until your team has a lead it can verify.
- Search from one known detail: a name, phone, email, address, social profile or IP address
- Follow address history and connected records with Auto Trace
- Check phone, Do Not Call and email status before anyone makes contact
Illustration: a Caspar People Search on the mobile number 0412 555 018 returns one record, Mark Anthony Ellison at 14 Banksia Ct, Toowoomba. The Record Detail opens and is exported as a PDF record extract.
Where it's used
Keep cases moving when contact details change
People move, change numbers and stop using old email addresses. Skip tracing helps your team find another way to reach them, starting from the details already on file.
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Recovery and collections
Locate a customer who has moved or changed number since the account was opened, so recovery work can continue.
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Legal matters
Find a current address for a party or witness before serving documents or progressing a matter.
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Insurance claims
Re-establish contact with a claimant or third party when the details on the claim no longer work.
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Beneficiary enquiries
Trace beneficiaries, members or account holders for estates, superannuation and unclaimed funds.
Workflow
Follow the information from search to lead
Skip tracing is iterative. Each result can give you a detail you did not have before, and that detail becomes the next search. The sections below follow one fictional case through seven stages.
Case file
Fictional
- Subject
- Mark Ellison
- On file
- 0412 555 018, several years old
- Missing
- Current address, email and date of birth
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Step 1: Start
Search the detail you already hold. One field is enough.
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Step 2: Assess
Open the full record and judge how recent and complete it is.
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Step 3: Expand
Review who else lived at the address, then run an Auto Trace.
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Step 4: Search again
Take any new phone number, email or address into another search.
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Step 5: Verify and review
Check contactability, compare the evidence, then review the search history.
Initial search
Start with the information already on file
There is no minimum amount of information needed. Every People Search field is reverse searchable, so an old phone number on its own is a valid search. Start with the detail you trust most, and add criteria one at a time if the results are too broad.
Illustrative Caspar screens with fictional details.
Record assessment
Assess the record before following the lead
The full record shows what Caspar holds and when it was last confirmed. Read it as evidence to weigh, not as a verdict on where the person is now.
What an Updated date tells you
A recent date
The person's connection to the address was confirmed recently.
An older date
The connection has not been confirmed recently. The person may still be there or may have moved. Long-term residents and people with a small data footprint update least often.
Unverified
There is not enough information to confirm when the record originated. It may still be current. Open the full record to check for more detail.
An older date is not evidence the record is wrong. Corroborate it with other evidence: real estate history in the Record Detail, a live phone or email check, or an Auto Trace for a more recent record.
Expanded enquiry
Explore address history and connected records
An address usually links to more than one person over time. Review who lived there, then let Auto Trace find other records connected to your subject.
View 1 · Occupancy history
Who else lived at 14 Banksia Ct
Clicking an address in a result runs an occupancy search: every current and previous resident Caspar has recorded, with their date ranges. People who shared the address with your subject may know where they are now.
The speech-bubble icon beside Mark's name means he was an occupant before the property was sold or listed for rent, and may no longer live there.
View 2 · Auto Trace
Records connected to your subject
The trace icon at the end of Mark's row starts an Auto Trace with his details carried across. Results are ranked by connection strength, not recency. Work from the top down.
- Primary
- May be a record for your subject. A high-scoring Primary at a different address may be a more recent record.
- Relative
- A possible relative: same last name, living with or near the Primary person.
- Associate
- A possible associate: someone who has lived with the Primary person.
Relative and Associate are inferred from shared records such as a common address or surname. They are possible avenues of indirect contact, not confirmed relationships, and they say nothing about your subject's identity. Verify any relationship independently before relying on it.
Follow-up searching
Use new details to continue the search
Every name, address, phone number and email address in a result is itself searchable. One click on the email from the Auto Trace starts a reverse search to see who it belongs to and where they are recorded.
Verification and review
Check the lead before taking the next step
Before anyone makes contact, test the contact points and compare the record with what you know about your subject. Contact checks are point-in-time signals, and they are enabled per account.
| Check | What it tells you | What it does not tell you | In this case |
|---|---|---|---|
| Phone connection check | The number is in service. | That it belongs to your subject. An indeterminate result is often temporary. | 0438 555 271: Connected |
| Do Not Call register | Whether the number is on the register at the time of the check. | Who holds the number. An earlier result needs a recheck to confirm the current status. | Not on the register |
| Email deliverability check | The mailbox accepts mail. | That the address belongs to your subject. | m.ellison84@example.com: Deliverable |
| Record comparison | Whether year of birth, addresses and timeframes fit your subject. | Identity on its own. A similar record can belong to someone with a similar name. | Year of birth 1984 on both records. Ballarat first seen Feb 2023, after Toowoomba was last seen in Aug 2021. |
Your team's decision
A live contact point is not a confirmed identity
A working phone or deliverable email confirms the contact point is live, not that it belongs to Mark. Your team corroborates identity and decides whether the trace is complete.
Any contact should meet your organisation's legal and privacy obligations, particularly when approaching possible relatives or associates.
Review and revisit in My Activity
Every search in the case is listed with its date, type, subject and result count. Click a subject to re-run it with the same criteria, for example after the next weekly update. Each user sees their own history.
Illustrative My Activity list. Under your account's retention policy, older entries may show "Record no longer available".
Software
People Search and Auto Trace in Caspar
Caspar
Global Data's skip-tracing, identity and KYC platform for Australian consumer records. The two searches do different jobs, and most traces use both.
Auto Trace
Expands outward from a name and address to find alternative records for the same person and possible relatives and associates, ranked by connection strength.
- Use it to
- Work from an old or sparse record
- Account features
- The tabs and checks you see depend on your account. Phone, Do Not Call and email checks and CSV export are enabled per account.
- Subscription
- Caspar Pro includes the full set of features, data and functionality. Caspar Basic does not include social media, employment or court information. Data is updated weekly, every Monday morning.
- Date of birth
- Results show year of birth as a privacy safeguard. Full date of birth can be enabled where you can explain the use case.
Getting started
Put skip tracing into your workflow
Tell us about the cases you trace and who will run the searches. We can then recommend the right subscription and account features.
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Starting information
The details your files usually contain, such as old phone numbers, past addresses, email addresses or household names.
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Case types
Recovery, legal, claims or beneficiary work, and roughly how many cases you trace each month.
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Users
Who will run searches. Each user has their own login and My Activity history.
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Access requirements
The features you need, such as contact checks or CSV export, and the privacy obligations that apply to your use.
Request a Demo Already a customer? Book a Caspar training session on 03 9948 4089.
FAQs
Common questions about skip tracing
What details do we need to start a search?
One is enough. Every People Search field is reverse searchable, so you can start from a name, phone number, email address, street address, social profile URL or IPv4 address. Add more criteria one at a time to narrow a broad result.
What does a record's Updated date mean?
It shows when the record was first and most recently seen in Caspar’s data. An older date means the record has not been confirmed recently, not that it is wrong. Corroborate it with other evidence on the record, a contact check or an Auto Trace.
How often is Caspar's data updated?
Weekly, every Monday morning. More than 1,000 aggregated sources are deduplicated, validated and cleaned before being published. This is separate from a record’s Updated date, which only changes when new source data mentions that person. If a record isn’t found one week, it’s worth searching again in the following weeks.
Are Relatives and Associates confirmed connections?
No. Auto Trace infers them from shared records, such as a common address or surname. Treat them as possible avenues of indirect contact, and verify any relationship independently before relying on it.
Does a connected phone number confirm we have the right person?
No. A connected number is in service and a deliverable email accepts mail, but neither proves the contact point belongs to your subject. Compare the record’s year of birth, addresses and timeframes before acting. Contact checks are enabled per account.
Can we go back to an earlier search?
Yes. My Activity lists each user’s Caspar searches with the date, type, subject and result count. Click the subject to re-run a search with the same criteria. Older entries may become unavailable under your account’s data retention policy.
Request a demo
See the tracing workflow for your team
Tell us about the cases you trace and the details you usually start with. We will run a fictional case through Caspar and talk through how it fits your work. Use the call to cover:
The demo covers
- Searching from the details on your files
- Reading records, Updated dates and Auto Trace results
- Contact checks, subscription options and user access
Prefer to talk? Call 03 9948 4089, 9am to 5pm AEST, Monday to Friday.
Get started
Book A Demo
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